A while back, we had a lovely bird’s eye view of Venice through some stunning aerial photography. Today, we’re adding the dreamy long exposures of Cesena-based documentary and architectural photographer Antonello Zoffoli to our favorite views of the captivating Italian city. If you’re into the serene look that long exposures bring, let this set be an inspiration for you.

The technique is a favorite of many landscape photographers, particularly when working with scenes with bodies of water. We’ve previously seen this style in the atmospheric snaps of Vassilis Tangoulis and Darren Moore with their skillful use of long exposures. Zoffoli’s work, meanwhile, makes a fitting use of the technique to render Venice’s world-famous canals and waterways into dreamy elements.

According to Zoffoli, the set represents a kilometer of space surrounding the heart of Venice, “where the chaos of the crowd hinders the complete vision of the landscape.” Each of the photos took up to 30 seconds of exposure in order to eliminate the said distractions and noises, allowing a “dream-like three-dimensionality” to his visions of Venice.

In his set’s description, Zoffoli also describes the effect created by the long exposure technique as a “time dilation.” Even more interesting is his idea that this effect “allows us to admire the aspects of matter that [are] different from those that we usually grasp with our vision.”

As we’re used to seeing busy life in the watery corners surrounding and comprising Venice, these long exposures definitely give us a new perspective. In one of the photos, we see ghostly streaks over the calm waters in place of boats — the only indication we have on the activity usually seen around the city.